Blog
From the moment that they opened their doors, Johnstone Coffee Co have placed an unwavering onus on bettering their community.
Toni Marshall explains how this prepared them for a momentous year, in which their commitment to their town was on display like never before.
Blog by Mill Magazine as part of Paisley Food and Drink Festival 2021.
Johnstone Coffee Co has been warmly embraced by the area since opening its doors. Did this mean that it only seemed natural to give back?
Absolutely! Our local community is the bedrock of our business and the reason why opening in Johnstone was a no-brainer. I said to the staff back when we opened that we need to earn the right to serve and operate in Johnstone, simply rolling up the shutter is not enough. As the shop has grown to be a big part of the community, it only seemed right to share the success of it with the local area.
You’ve done a lot of community work over the past year – specifically, giving away free lunches to school kids during lockdown. How did this come about?
The lockdowns and this past year in general threw up a lot of challenges and uncertainty to many families in our catchment area. Something had to be done about it and after conferring with Elderslie Butchers, we then decided as a local business that we would step in to help as many families as we can. Come the end of the first lockdown, we gave out just under 2000 free school meals
Do you feel that as an establishment that’s thriving within a tight-knit community, there is a duty to give back where you can?
In business, not every decision should be a financial one and I believe that local businesses need to challenge themselves more to better serve their community and customers. I believe it’s every business’s duty to give back to the locals they serve and that itself should define what being a part of a community is all about.
Do you believe that your outreach work will become a bigger part of JCC as it becomes more and more of an institution in the area?
Simply, yes! We are working on some plans just now that we hope to bring into fruition at the end of the year and they all centre on helping Johnstone bounce back from a rough year. More has to be done to help our local community adapt to life after lockdown and we hope to work closely with other local businesses and organisations to spearhead Johnstone’s comeback. As the owner, I have never been prouder to be a part of the Johnstone community and I will continue to play a role in helping any way we can.
Keep up with Toni and his team at the link below.